Hinge assembly



Nov. 3, 1964 J. 5. PARSONS 3,154,803

HINGE ASSEMBLY Filed Aug. 14, 1961 F i 2 6 2o 27 v 5, I Z4 Z6 42 32 30 25. I m 22 xl 3c, /6

INVENTOR. J O HN S. PARSONS ATTORNEX? United States Patent 3,154,8 33 EFJEE ASSEIVEELY S. iPareons, West Hartford, (Jenn, assignor to The Fataniey Works, New Britain, Conn, a corporation of Qonnectient Fitted Aug. 14, 1% Ser. No. 131,274 1 (Cl. 116-143) The present invention relates to hinges and more particularly to a novel two-knuckle hinge assembly affording versatility of finish and design for the barrel portion.

It is an aim of the present invention to provide a novel two-knuckle hinge assembly having a highly pleasing configuration and enabling utilization of a wide range of materials and finishes for the external surface of the knuckles.

Another aim is to provide a two-knuckle hinge assembly construction of variable appearance and relatively low cost which is durable and smooth in operation and which may be readily fabricated and easily mounted and dismounted.

A further aim is to provide a novel sheet metal twoknuckle hinge assembly wherein the configuration of the barrel portion may be varied to provide attractive and striking designs.

Other objects will be in part obvious and in part pointed out more in detail hereinafter.

The invention accordingly consists in the features of construction, combination of elements and arrangement of parts which will be exemplified in the construction hereafter set forth and the scope of the application which will be indicated in the appended claims.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is an exploded view of a hinge assembly embodying the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a front view thereof;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view along the line 3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a top view of the hinge; and

FIG. 5 is a top view with the cap removed.

Referring in detail to the attached drawings, a hinge exemplary of the present invention is therein illustrated and includes a pair of sheet metal leaves designated generally by the numerals 2, 4. The leaves are integrally formed and have mounting pad portions 6, 8 with apertures 9 therein for mounting purposes and aligned and axially spaced knuckle portions 10, 12 which are connected to the mounting pad portions 6, S by neck portions 14, 16. The knuckle portions 16, 12 are initially rolled from the sheet metal of the leaves 2, 4 to a generally cylindrical configuration and then coined in a tapered die to the illustrated frusto-conical configuration wherein the side walls of the uckles taper inwardly at a small angle to the vertical from their inner end. The knuckle portions 19, 12 have aligned bores 18, 2%) extending therethrough with enlarged portions 22, 24 extending inwardly from the center of the hinge. The pintle 26 is seated in the enlarged portions 22, 24 of the bores to provide a pivotal connection between the leaves 2, 4 and is provided with substantially conical end portions 27 facilitating seating in the knucldes. The pintle 26 is preferably non-rotatably mounted in the jamb leaf 2 by making the bore portion 22 of slightly lesser diameter so as to require force fitting of the pintle thereinto and by providing knurling upon the surface of the pintle as indicated by the numeral 28, but the pintle should provide a smooth turning lit in the bore portion 24 of the door leaf 4.

A thrust-bearing between the two knuckle portions 11), 12 is provided by the annular washer 39 which is rotatably seated in a circumferential groove 32 at the center portion of the pintle 26 therebetween. The washer 34) is preferably fabricated from a synthetic plastic having ice a relatively low coeflicient of friction such as nylon and high density polyethylene and has an inner diameter slightly smaller than the major diameter of the pintle 26 so as to permit it to freely turn in the groove 32 while preventing inadvertent movement axially of the pintle once it has been forced into place.

Seated on each of the knuckle portions 19, 12 are caps 34, 36 having an internal seat of cooperating generally fr-ustoconical internal configuration so that the side surfaces closely interfit. Slots 33, 40 in the side walls extend axially from the inner end of the caps to receive the neck portions 14, 15 of the hinge leaves in a sliding fit, the neck portions 14, 16 being secantly disposed with respect to the axis of the caps.

The caps 34, 36 are secured to the knuckle portions 16, 12 by a thin coating (not shown) of a high-strength adhesive such as an epoxy. Due to the cooperating slope of the outer side surface of the knuckle portions and of the inner side surface of the caps in the illustrated embodiment, the adhesive may be applied uniformly over the surface and the seating of the cap will not produce any wiping action upon the adhesive coating, thus ensuring a substantially uniform coating and a firm bond therebetween.

In the illustrated embodiment, the pintle 26 has substantially conical end portions 27 which terminate inwardly of the outer ends of the knuckle bores 18, 2% so as to provide a free space therein adjacent the caps. Grease or other lubricant (not shown) is desirably loaded into this free space of the upper bore Zti to provide a reservoir for continually lubricating the moving surfaces of the pintle 26 and bore 20, thus providing extended smooth and trouble-free action. The conical end portion 27 at the upper end of the pintle tends to distribute and carry the lubricant from the reservoir and distribute it evenly about the opposed surfaces.

The caps 34, 36 may be fabricated from a variety of materials including metal, wood and plastic, which in turn, can be finished according to desire to provide a hinge having knuckles which can be matched with or contrasted with the decor of the surroundings. The outer configuration of the caps can be varied to provide a number of attractive designs including the illustrated frustoconical configuration, globular, square, reversely frustoconical, etc. If so desired, the caps and other door hardware such as the escutcheon plates for the knobs, the knobs themselves, and locks may be matched and sold as a highly attractive assembly.

As will be readily apparent, the hinge of the present invention may be readily and economically fabricated by stamping the desired blank from sheet metal and forming the rolled knuckle therein. The pintle and thrust bearing assembly provide smooth operation for extended periods of time and permit ready disassembly when desired merely by lifting the door sufficiently to have the upper knuckle clear the pintle.

The caps may be stocked separately from the remainder of the hinge assembly thus permitting selection from a wide variety of decorative caps to be utilized therewith in response to customer orders and reducing storage space requirements. Upon order, the selected caps may be readily assembled to the knuckle portion by application of adhesive to form a strong bond therebetween.

As will be apparent to persons skilled in the art, various modifications and adaptations of the structure above described will become readily apparent without departure from the spirit and scope of the invention, the scope of which is defined in the appended claim.

I claim:

A hinge assembly including a pair of sheet metal hinge leaves each having a mounting portion and a rolled knuckle portion connected to the mounting portion, the

knuckle portions having aligned pintle-receiving bores therein and providing outersurfaces of generally frustoconical configuration having a taper diverging toward the adjacent ends of the knuckle portions, a pintle positioned in said bores and providing a pivotal connection between the hinge leaves, caps on the knuckle portions having frustoconical inner surfaces complementary to the outer surfaces of the knuckle portions, and substantially uniform coatings of adhesive between the complementary surfaces of the knuckle portions and the caps to bond the same together.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Parsons June 14, 1927 North July 14, 1936 Morse Apr. 18, 1939 Harris Nov. 14, 1939 Fischer May 21, 1940 Nichols Nov. 11, 1952. Bingham Aug. 7, 1956 Perry Dec. 19, 1961 Ahlgren Jan. 2, 1962 

